The Abbott cabinet will this week consider the purchase of 58 more F-35 joint strike fighters at a cost of up to $10 billion, despite a project watchdog warning software problems threaten another year’s delay.

The controversial $US400 billion ($425 billion) project to deliver 3100 radar-avoiding stealth fighters to the US and key allies, including Australia, has been plagued by development problems which have already contributed to a six-year delay.

Australia has plans to buy up to 100 aircraft at a cost of $16 billion but so far has purchased just two, with a further 12 approved but not yet ordered.

An additional 58 would bring fleet numbers to 72 – the number the Coalition committed to at the election.

The Chief of Air Force, Air Marshal Geoff Brown, confirmed in March, the Defence Department had prepared a submission for cabinet following an improvement in the performance of the $US­­400 billion project.

Consideration is likely to begin as early as a meeting of cabinet’s powerful National Security Committee on Thursday.

On the plus side, the controversial project has also received a shot in the arm over the past month with Korea’s decision to buy up to 40 fighters at a cost of about $7 billion.

Korea has become the third country after Japan and Israel to buy the fighter outside the eight partner countries involved in the US partnership.

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Partner countries include Australia, Turkey, Denmark, Norway, Italy, the UK, the Netherlands and Canada – though Canada is reconsidering all options for a new fighter.

According to a US Government Accountability Office report released in late March, the F-35’s mission management system needs a debugging effort to meet the plane’s various roles.

“Challenges in development and testing of missions systems software continued through 2013 due largely to delays in software delivery, limited capability in the software when delivered and the need to fix problems and re-test multiple software versions,’’ the GAO report said.

“The Director of Operational Test and Evaluation predicts the delivery of war-fighting capabilities could be delayed by as much as 13 months," the report said.

Potential service hub

The report said the delays are likely to limit the war-fighting capabilities of the first F-35s due for introduction into the US marine corps from July next year.

But the US Air Force head of the Joint Strike Fighter program, Lieutenant General Chris Bogdan, told reporters in Canberra in March that many of the problems that had beset the program for several years had been resolved.

Concerns over whether the plane could deal with lightning strikes and fuel-dumping difficulties have been overcome, as has software for a state-of-the-art helmet display.

Lieutenant General Bogdan also said he could also see Australia becoming a service hub for the fighter if it wished to pursue that path, given Australian industry had already won more than $350 million in spin-off work.

Lieutenant General Bogdan also said the price tag for the fighter was coming down, so that by the time the RAAF took delivery, the average price tag would be down to $US85 million.

Australia’s first two cost about $130 million, given they were bought during the aircraft’s early development phase.

Australian Strategic Policy Institute analyst Dr Andrew Davies said the project was improving and software problems should be dealt with before Australia takes delivery of the bulk of its fleet.

There are three variants of the F-35 and Australia is buying the model with the least risk – the conventional take-off and landing version. It also comes in a carrier version and a short take-off and vertical landing version.

“The F-35 is the only fifth-generation fighter available and, if Australia wants to maintain its regional air superiority, it is the only option,’’ Dr Davies said.